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A surge of imported agri-food commodities such as Irish dairy products under new trade agreements has led the Canadian government to include a €2.5bn support package for farmers in its budget proposal this Tuesday.
Canadian farmers have been worried about access for European cheese and other products under the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), while the Tran-Pacific Partnership has also entered into force and a new Canada-US-Mexico trade agreement was recently concluded.
We will make available an income protection program for supply-managed farmers, along with a measure to protect the value of quota
"To ensure that Canada's dairy, poultry and egg farmers can continue to provide Canadians with high-quality products in a world of free trade, we will make available an income protection programme for supply-managed farmers, along with a measure to protect the value of quota investments these farmers have already made," said Canadian Finance Minister Bill Morneau.
He announced a €1.4bn top-up to existing direct payments to farmers affected by greater competition as a result of CETA, and €1bn to compensate farmers for the loss of value in their quota.
Dairy, poultry and egg farmers in Canada are in a quota system similar to dairy in the EU prior to 2015.
Those sectors represent around 20,000 farmers, which puts the average compensation announced in Tuesday's budget at over €100,000 per farm.
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